Compelling Conversations

Questions and Quotations on Timeless Topics for ESL learners and teachers

Posts Tagged English teachers

Passion and Persistence: Self-Published ESL Authors Tell Their Stories

Jan 25

Posted by Eric Roth in ESL | 5 Comments

What motivates ESL teachers to become authors? Why do many of these authors self-publish? What’s their likelihood of success?

Naturally, I’m quite interested in these questions – and hope other English as a Second Language (ESL) teachers will share my interests. The acceptance of this panel discussion by CATESOL for the state conference both surprised and pleased me – especially since I’m the third panelist!

Here is the original 300-word proposal written in third person to make it sound more academic. Elizabeth Weal, the panel organizer and ESL author, wrote the successful proposal. She also chose the catchy title.
——————————————————————-
Passion and Persistence: Self-Published ESL Authors Tell Their Stories

In this CATESOL panel discussion, three authors of ESL books will share the pleasures and perils of self-publishing as well as offer tips for those contemplating writing and publishing an ESL text.

Like most sectors of the textbook market, the ESL textbook market is dominated by a few large publishers. But the situation is rapidly changing as increasing numbers of ESL professionals-turned-authors start their own publishing companies, maintaining control over virtually every aspect of the book production process.

In this panel three authors of successful ESL books will recount their experiences publishing ESL texts. What motivated them to put pen to paper? Why did they self-publish as opposed to turning to a traditional publisher? How do these authors define success? What has been their greatest disappointment? What previously unfilled niche does their book fill?

The authors also will touch on some of the key issues self-published authors most address: Concerns about self-publishing and academic respectability, risks and benefits of self-publishing, and steps to follow in the self-publishing process.

Each panelist comes to the table with a different perspective. Diane Asitimbay, author of What’s Up America? wanted to answer the most common and embarrassing questions ESL students asked her; Eric H. Roth, author of Compelling Conversations teaches international graduate students the pleasures and perils of writing and speaking in English at the University of Southern California. Elizabeth Weal, author of Gramática del ingles: Past a paso and English Grammar Step by Step wanted to find a way to explain English grammar to Spanish speakers who knew very little about grammar in English or Spanish.

Ample time will be left at the end of the discussion to take questions from the audience.
——————————————————————–

Self-publishing is both a pleasure and a headache, but I’m going to accent the positive. After all, as Churchill noted, “success is going from failure to failure without a loss of enthusiasm.”

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Reading Pleasures and Conversation Starters

Sep 11

Posted by Eric Roth in Conversation Tips, ESL, book reviews, conversation starters | No Comments

A new semester begins, new students enter our classes, and returning colleagues greet us. What can talk about that will go beyond the work-related activities?

Books.

Teachers, especially English teachers, love to talk about their summer reading. Reading remains a cheap pleasure and an excellent conversation starter.

* Can you recommend a good book?
* What did you this summer?
* What are reading these days – besides student papers?

Books and ideas still matter in our 21st century global culture of blogs, especially for starting conversations. Discussing books, sharing ideas, and exchanging tips helps elevate casual office chit-chat into more satisfying verbal exchanges.

In the past few weeks, I’ve enjoyed several satisfying conversations with my teaching colleagues – and a few more memorable conversations with strangers about books. How?

I looked around, noted the reading choices of folks, and asked a friendly question.

• Is that a good book?
• How did you choose that book?
• Can you recommend a good book?

Likewise, talking about books and reading pleasures gives us new information about our world – and insights into our friends and students. For longer, better conversations, you can ask the following questions:

• What’s the best book you’ve read this year?
• Who is your favorite author, anyway?
* How have your reading habits changed?
• Are you still reading Alain de Botton?
* What are you reading these days?

If you have time to listen, the answers might surprise you.

Our English students also enjoy talking about their favorite books and reading experiences. Here’s a link to a conversation lesson that I’ve had success with in high intermediate and advanced ESL/EFL classes.
http://compellingconversations.com/pdf/reading_pleasures.pdf

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What Does Success Mean? What Definition Works for You?

Aug 10

Posted by Eric Roth in Compelling Conversations, EFL, ESL, academic matters, censorship, educational philosophy | No Comments

Sometimes the simplest questions create the best conversations.

What does success mean? What definition are you using? How is that definition working for you?

After a hectic summer teaching English and directing a private high school English program in Vietnam, I’ve been asking myself these questions quite a bit. I learned many lessons, deepened a close friendship with two old friends, met many fine English teachers, and enjoyed working and living in a rapidly developing nation. I discovered new places, ate new dishes, and saw new sights. That sounds like success.

From a professional English teaching perspective, I also made some significant curriculum changes, adding more student-centered activities and oral presentations. Further, I oversaw the creation of a new, tailored version of Compelling Conversations: Questions and Quotations for Vietnamese English Language Learners. From the resume perspective, the summer certainly was successful. The bank account shows progress. Success right?

Yet there were several disappointments and setbacks both inside and outside the private school and EFL classrooms too. “Stunning” became an adjective of choice, and often as an expression of exasperation. The everyday restriction of information and huge income disparities continually discomforted me. I experienced culture shock for weeks, and often felt dislocated and ill at ease. I didn’t exactly feel successful. Or at least, this success didn’t feel so comfortable. As George Bernard Shaw noted, “Success covers a multitude of blunders.”

Therefore, I’ve been reflecting on the meaning of career success, and having some wonderful conversations with friends and fellow English and ESL teachers. Do you know the website TED.com? I often go there for ideas – and sometimes classroom materials for advanced ESL students.

Today, this lecture on developing a kinder, gentler definition of success from a TED conference by Alain de Botton commanded my attention. With wit and humor, the philosophical author critiqued the contemporary obsession with career success.

Personally, I found Botton’s words and reflections refreshing and helpful. You might too. Listen for yourself, and found out!

http://www.ted.com/talks/alain_de_botton_a_kinder_gentler_philosophy_of_success.html

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A kinder, gentler definition of success

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Standardized Exams: Ends or Means?

Jun 21

Posted by Chimayo Press in EFL, ESL, English class, English curriculum, Teaching matters, academic matters, adult education, educational philosophy, language debate, language schools | No Comments

We Just Want a High TOEFL Score!

Students often need solid TOEFL scores to study abroad, including the United States, Canada, Australia, and the United Kingdom. Naturally, this need – and ambition – often makes reaching a certain number on the TOEFL exam as the goal of their English studies.

Unfortunately, sometimes these imperfect standardized exams – all attempts to measure language ability of English language learners – become a goal in and of itself. Consequently,  some students and stressed parents want all their English classes to primarily focus on test preparation. “We just need a good TOEFL score” mantra can lead to pressure on private high schools and language programs to exclude material unrelated directly to the influential ETS exam.

Let me suggest that this worshipping at the altar of standardized test scores can distort, even pervert, English language instruction. While excellent, specialized test preparation courses serve a vital purpose, they should be small parts of a larger English curriculum. The main focus of language programs, especially in high schools,  should be helping students develop authentic language skills so they can actually read, write, listen, and speak English – both inside and outside the classrooms and away from multiple choice exams.

Edgar Allen Poe, Shakespeare, John Steinbeck, and Jack London may or may not appear on the next TOEFL test, but high school and older English students should be exposed to their writings. We do not want to throw away our humanistic cultural heritage and reduce our English and ESL classes into mere test training. The TOEFL exam is a means, not an end in and of itself.

Likewise, we need – as English teachers – to remember that ideas matter, celebrate our dynamic language,  and avoid the temptation to become grammar fundamentalists or mere language technicians. Learning English, a global tongue, allows students to move beyond the narrow confines of their local language and more easily join the global village. Let’s keep those larger goals – and the humanities – in the English curriculum.

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Attention, California English Teachers – Our CATESOL Conference Opens Thursday!

Apr 15

Posted by Chimayo Press in ESL | 2 Comments

Time flies – especially when focusing on taxes, grading papers, and browsing the internet!

Somehow, the calendar reads April 15. Everybody knows that this is America’s tax day. Yet California English teachers might also remember that April 16 marks the opening of our annual CATESOL conference too.

For better or for worse, that also means I have less than 60 hours before presenting my workshop for ESL teachers too. Time to review the worksheet materials and update my presentation to include insights gained interviewing English teachers and students in Vietnam. Curious about my presentation?

Here is the CATESOL program description:
Techniques and Practices for a More Democratic Classroom
Eric Roth, USC
Demonstration C/U
11:00 – 11:45 a.m. Convention Center 207
A more democratic classroom encourages student speech, features student created content, allows student choice of assignments, reflects student interests, and includes peer evaluations. Democratic classrooms create autotelic, or self-directed, students where everyone learns by stumbling and making “good mistakes.” Includes handouts.
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If you are visiting Pasadena or Los Angeles, teach English, and want to discover new teaching ideas and find the latest ESL materials, please consider attending the 2009 CATESOL convention this week.
http://www.catesol2009.org/confprogram.html
Consider me psyched.

By the way, a smile crossed my face while reading through the detailed CATESOL 2009 conference program. CATESOL, and the ESL field, continue to attract many dedicated teachers and ESL professionals who enjoy sharing their insights and teaching experiences. As so often before, I will learn a great deal. One presentation title, however, caught my eye. How to be a Benevolent Dictator! Naturally, it’s lead by a friend and fellow USC instructor.

As so often in live, variety adds spice. Perspectives differ – especially among friends and English teachers!

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Vietnam Embraces English Classes – and Looks for Communicative English Teachers

Apr 2

Posted by Chimayo Press in Compelling Conversations, EFL, academic matters, adult education, educational philosophy, language politics, linguistics, miseducation | 3 Comments

My recent trip to Vietnam to meet English teachers and lead a professional development seminar at the American-Pacific University, Vietnam lead to many wonderful moments and a few surprising conversations.

Teaching English in developing countries always poses challenges, and Vietnam falls into that category. Lt me share a few selective details to provide a brief introduction to education atmosphere for English teachers who prefer a communicative approach to grammar drill and kill tasks. Consider the gap between a traditional teacher-centered education philosophy and modern student-centered approaches for teaching English.

- An English language magazine cover story proclaimed: “Let Students Ask Questions.” The two-page article presented the idea of students – even college students – asking classroom questions as an overdue reform.
-Vietnam, the world’s fasting growing economy, has embarked on a rapid expansion of English language classes. The official government ministry of Education and Training has even adopted a new slogan: Friendly School; Active Students. This new slogan presumably indicates that the old approach was something else!
- Several APU high school seniors, in long interviews, indicated that they were forbidden from even talking in their old public high school English classes. These same students informed me that English class in the public high school ranged between 50-70 students. Sometimes the English instructor was believed to be unable to actually speak English. As a result, the class focused extensively on grammar and fill in the blanket tests.
- A few APU students expressed gratitude that they could have actual classroom discussions because this was a new educational experience for them. “We ask questions, and the teacher responds,” laughed one senior. Imagine the possibilities!

These few glimpses into Vietnam’s evolving education system indicate an increasingly awareness that communication skills matter. They also confirm that students, parents, and teachers want better schools and more communicative English language classes.

So let me repeat two favorite themes. Good schools cultivate student curiosity, and English lessons should allow students to display their experiences and perceptions. Further, students who have been forced to take years of English class should be able to speak English – and I literally mean speak English. Conversation skills are not a bonus for excellent students; they remain an essential life skill for international students, entrepreneurs, and immigrants. Therefore, English teachers can and must allow students time and opportunity to develop their speaking skills in class. Why is this still controversial in 2009?

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Teaching Interview Skills Vital for Adult ESL, University Students

Feb 16

Posted by Chimayo Press in Conversation lessons, ELL, ESL, Speaking Skills, adult education, adult literacy, educational philosophy, forms and worksheets, technology and education, workplace communication skills, worksheets and charts | 1 Comment

How can English teachers encourage adult and university students to expand their language skills and improve their employment opportunities in a difficult economic climate?

Personally, I’ve slightly modified my oral skills course this semester to provide greater emphasis on interviewing skills. Students interviewed each other for 10-15 minute videotaped mock job interviews for their first assignment.

The use of videotaping students in class has gained far more acceptance in the last few years, partly due to the technological advances. OTAN, the adult education website established by the California Department of Education, even created an entire section devoted to using videotapes and videocameras in the adult ESL classes.

Another factor has been the increasing popularity of YouTube videoclips by students seeking practical information. I’ve combined those two trends by requiring students to find and review YouTube clips on vital employment skills and speaking skills. Students found and reviewed videoclips, and emailed them in as homework. Afterwards, I combined all the student evaluations into a single email that I sent to the entire class with a few editorial comments and minor editing.

Here is the homework sheet for that assignment. As with the reviews, “use or lose.”

Getting Job Interview Advice from YouTube!

Student Name:
Class:
Teacher:
School:
Date:

Please find an YouTube videoclip that helps people successfully interview for jobs – in English – that you would like to share with your classmates. Watch the video, take notes, and review it for your classmates.

Video title:
Web address:
Length:
Creator:

Please describe the video.

What interview tips did the video provide?

Where do you think the video was produced? Why?

How practical did you find the advice? Why?

What was the strongest part? Why?

What was the weakest part? Why?

Who do think is the target audience for this video?

Why did you choose this video?

How would you rate this video 1-5 stars? Why?
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This simple worksheet combines research, critical thinking, and language skills. As English teachers, we can use simple technology to help English language learners develop their language skills, especially when they are motivated to learn and search out new sources. Instead of dismissing YouTube searching as a waste of time, let’s turn their interests into productive learning opportunities and share insights. After all, employment interviews often serve as a real-world language tests for our ESL students.

Let’s make sure we give them the tools to pass those crucial tests.

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Do you match? How do you know? Bringing Realism to Relationship discussions in ESL Classrooms

Feb 14

Posted by Chimayo Press in Compelling Conversations, Conversation lessons, ESL, adult education, conversation starters, favorite quotations, forms and worksheets | No Comments

Are you romantically involved? Do you match your partner? How do you know? Who will you choose to share your life with? Are you considering marriage? Are you already married? Use these questions as a springboard to reflect on your options, choices, and desires on this Valentine’s Day.

Here is chapter #33 from Compelling Conversations that many friends have told me is better for native speakers than English language learners or ESL classrooms. Perhaps they are right. On the other hand, I’ve had great conversations in my adult ESL and college ESL classes using this chapter too.

As both a happily married man of 14 years and the child of divorced parents, these questions seem like smart questions to ask – even for romantics on Valentine’s Day. Perhaps especially on Valentine’s Day when the official propaganda of “love will conquer all” seems so pervasive. So whether English teachers ask themselves, their partner, or their students these questions, I’d like to share this list on my blog tonight.

I’m also including a short videoclip from Discovery News that I found quite interesting on the origins of kissing and how that satisfying activity is believed to have spread around the globe. Enjoy!

The Skinny on Smooching from Discovery News

1. Why do (did) you want to get married?
2. Do (did) you have a checklist of qualities for a potential spouse?
3. What are the three main qualifications on your checklist? Partner?
Provider? Lover? Friend?
4. When did you fall in love? Did one person fall first? Who?
5. How did you know your lover was the one? How did your thinking
evolve?
6. Did you ever have moments of doubt? How did your thinking evolve?
7. Do you think people should live together before they get married?
Why? Can you share some examples?
8. Are sex, love and marriage linked in your mind, or is each separate?
How are they different?
9. What are some endearing qualities of your companion?
10. Do you like your partner’s friends? Do you respect them? Why?
11. What advice have your parents and close friends given you? Your
extended family? How important is their opinion in your decision? Why?
12. Do you think you are marrying only an individual or are you also
marrying your spouse’s family? How would you describe your
potential in-laws?
13. What does your partner do that annoys you?
14. Do you expect to be the pilot, co-pilot, or passenger in the
marriage? Why?
15. What, if anything, would definitely cause you to divorce? Why?

Q U E S T I O N S A N D Q U OTAT I O N S O N T I M E L E S S TO P I C S • 1 0 5
V O C A B U L A R Y
Review these words and expressions. Circle the words that you know.
potential ……………………………………………………………………………………….
neat freak ……………………………………………………………………………………..
spouse …………………………………………………………………………………………..
nupital ………………………………………………………………………………………….
conflicts ………………………………………………………………………………………..
checklist ………………………………………………………………………………………..
resolve ………………………………………………………………………………………….
pre-nuptial ……………………………………………………………………………………
compatible ……………………………………………………………………………………
pack rat ………………………………………………………………………………………..
justify ……………………………………………………………………………………………
evolve …………………………………………………………………………………………..

P R O V E R B S
What do these proverbs mean? Can you share some other proverbs?
The needle is always accompanied by the thread.—Korean
Strange is the affinity that binds two in marriage.—Japanese
Whoever marries only for beauty will live in misery.—Russian

T H E C O N V E R S A T I O N C O N T I N U E S …
1. Thinking about personal preferences, do you like to stay up late or
get up early? Do you have compatible sleeping habits?
2. Do you have similar media habits? What about tastes in TV shows
and movies?
3. Where do you prefer to live? Country? City? Farm? Apartment?
House?
4. Are you a pack rat? Are you a neat freak? Are your styles
compatible?
5. Will you still love your partner when he or she is 64? Will your
partner love you with wrinkles?
6. Do you know an older couple that might be a model for a good
partnership? Who are they?
7. What activities do you enjoy in your leisure time? Will your spouse
join you?
8. Do you and your lover share spending philosophies? Do you shop
together?
9. Do you expect to live with older generations? Who? Why? Where?
When?
10. What is your approach to settling conflicts? How often do you have
conflicts?
11. Do you want children? How many?
N O T E S & Q U E S T I O N S
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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1 0 6 • w w w. c o m p e l l i n g c o n v e r s a t i o n s . c o m

12. Do you believe in birth control? Why?
13. How do you think your baby would look like? Why?
14. What kind of parent do you expect your spouse to become? Why?
15. Would you want your sons to be like the man you’re marrying?
Would you want your daughters to be like the woman you’re
marrying?
16. Do you expect to follow family or religious traditions? Which ones?
Why?
17. If disagreements arise about children, how do you expect to
resolve them?
18. Do you think all money should be shared or should each spouse
have separate bank accounts? Why? How do you expect to
manage household expenses?
19. What were the best gifts that you’ve given or received in the
relationship?
20. What passions do you share? What unites you as a couple?
21. Do you have a favorite photograph of you as a couple? Can you
describe it?
22. Where do you want to travel together? What do you want to see
together?
23. What are you looking forward to doing together as a married
couple?
24. How do you expect your life to change once you are married?
What are some advantages of being married?
25. Do you have any tips or suggestions on how to create and preserve
a happy marriage?

Q U O T A T I O N S
Which two quotations come closest to your attitudes?
1. “By all means marry; if you get a good wife, you’ll become happy;
if you get a bad one, you’ll become a philosopher.”
—Socrates (470-339 BC), Greek philosopher
2. “Man’s best possession is a sympathetic wife.”
—Euripides (480-406 BC), playwright
3. “I’m so gullible. I’m so damn gullible. And I am so sick of being
gullible.”
—Lana Turner (1921-1995), Hollywood star married seven times
4. “Love is the ideal thing, marriage a real thing; a confusion of the
real with the ideal never goes unpunished.”
—Goethe (1749-1832), German poet, novelist, and scientist
5. “Marriage is a great institution, but I’m not ready for an
institution.”
—Mae West (1892-1980), American actress
7. “Love means never having to say you’re sorry.”
—Ali McGraw in Love Story (1970)

“Love is the ideal thing, marriage a real
thing; a confusion of the real with the ideal
never goes unpunished.”
Goethe (1749-1832),
German poet, novelist, and scientist

Q U E S T I O N S A N D Q U OTAT I O N S O N T I M E L E S S TO P I C S • 1 0 7

8. “Marriage: A word that should be pronounced ‘mirage.’”
—Herbert Spencer (1820-1903), English philosopher
9. “No matter who you get married to, you wake up married to
somebody else.”
—Marlon Brando in Guys and Dolls (1955)
10. “Second marriage: the triumph of hope over experience.”
—Dr. Samuel Johnson (1709-1784), English writer
11. “Marriage is a very good thing, but I think it’s a mistake to make a
habit of it.”
—W. Somerset Maugham (1874-1965), English novelist
12. “A happy marriage is a long conversation that always seems too
short.”
—Andre Maurois (1885-1967), French author
13. “A successful marriage is not a gift; it is an achievement.”
—Ann Landers (1918-2002), American advice columnist
★
O N Y O U R O W N
With your class partner, list three celebrity marriages that have ended in divorce. For each couple who divorced, list two reasons you think their marriage did not last.
Then, list three marriages of well known people that have lasted
more than 20 years. For each couple, list two reasons why you
think their marriage lasted. Share with the class.
1. ……………………………………………………………………………………………………
• . ……………………………………………………………………………………………….
• . ……………………………………………………………………………………………….
2. …………………………………………………………………………………………………….
• . ……………………………………………………………………………………………….
• . ……………………………………………………………………………………………….
3. …………………………………………………………………………………………………….
• . ……………………………………………………………………………………………….
• . ……………………………………………………………………………………………….
1. ……………………………………………………………………………………………………
• . ……………………………………………………………………………………………….
• . ……………………………………………………………………………………………….
2. …………………………………………………………………………………………………….
• . ……………………………………………………………………………………………….
• . ……………………………………………………………………………………………….
3. …………………………………………………………………………………………………….
• . ……………………………………………………………………………………………….
• . ……………………………………………………………………………………………….
1 0 8 • w w w. c o m p e l l i n g c o n v e r s a t i o n s . c o m

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The Skinny on Smooching from Discovery News

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English Teaching Professional Strongly Recommends Compelling Conversations!

Jan 29

Posted by Chimayo Press in Compelling Conversations, EFL, ESL, English class, Speaking Skills, academic matters, adult education, book reviews, favorite quotations, self-publishing | 14 Comments

Consider my global soul satisfied this morning!

English Teaching Professional, a glossy magazine for ESL teachers and language school directors, gave a glowing review and strong recommendation to Compelling Conversations: Questions and Quotations on Timeless Topics. “In sum, Compelling Conversations is a recommended resource for teachers who want to make their conversation classes more learner-centered,” wrote reviewer Hall Houston. “It should be especially appealing to those who who to escape the confines of the Presentation-Practice-Production approach and do without a formal grammatical or functional syllabus. It reflects the authors’ considerable professional experience, and would be a notable addition to any English teacher’s bookshelf.” The review also features a large copy of the book cover. Wow!

Houston also writes, “In my own teaching, I have found questions and quotations to be highly effective in promoting student discussion.” The review continues. “Questions are useful in that they require a response from the listener. Asking them also helps students master the tricky rules of the interrogative.”

“Quotations are brilliant flashes of wit expressed in the shortest space possible, often just a sentence or two,” observes Houston. “The authors have compiled a formidable collection of quotations by famous people from Napoleon and Aristotle to Tom Cruise and Sylvester Stallone. Some will have the students roaring with laughter ‘My movies were the kind they show in prisons and airplanes because nobody can leave.’ – Burt Reynolds), while others require careful introspection (‘Love is not just looking at each other; it’s looking in the same direction.’ – Antoine de Saint Exupery).”

The reviewer goes on. “The authors also add some wise proverbs here and there. My two favourites were ‘Recite “patience” three times and it will spare you a murder’ and ‘When money talks, truth keeps silent’, which are from Korea and Russia.” Houston, by the way, is the author of the outstanding ESL textbook The Creative Classroom: Teaching Languages Outside the Book. Coming from Houston, these words are especially pleasing.

My co-author Toni Aberson also appreciates that Houston, an English teacher working in Luzhu, Taiwan wrote the review in a British magazine with British spellings about an English textbook published in the United States. This international element adds a special delight to a long, three column review. “I just love it!”, exclaimed Aberson. We certainly live in a wonderful time to be English teachers.

While I my copy of English Teaching Professional two days ago, the January 2009 issue has been out for at least a week. The review appears on p.44 in Issue 60. Subscribers can access the full review at http://www.ETProfessional.com.

This positive book review might help explain the recent surge of class set orders. It also helps explain the sudden collection of emails and calls from Vietnam, Russia, Italy, and Canada in the last week about Compelling Conversations and possible collaborations. The appreciation of fellow ESL professionals gives me additional confidence, joy, and popularity. Sweet!

Let’s enjoy our 21st century lives!

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Do You Feel Rich Enough? What’s the Standard?

Jan 4

Posted by Chimayo Press in Compelling Conversations, EFL, ELL, adult education, conversation starters, workplace communication skills | 3 Comments

Talking about money remains problematic, but this conversation topic is more for self-reflection than classroom application. But please bear with me.

How rich are you? How much money would satisfy you? Americans, and many other people in consumer societies, sometimes seem to be pursuing a moving mirage of material happiness. The luxuries of one year become the perceived necessities the next year.

English teachers – and English language learners – are not immune to this problem. How rich are you on a strictly material level? Where do you stand from a global scale? ESL teachers continue to work part-time or hold two jobs, or even tutor English for extra cash. The economic crisis has only increased the sense of unease for many English teachers and English students.

Yet for Americans and English teachers feeling rather blue about our declining home values, vanishing retirement accounts, and questionable job security, this chart provides some useful perspective.

http://www.globalrichlist.com/

My score initially stunned me. (I was in the top 1% worldwide). While I have often been nervous about money, this chart reminds me to keep perspective. Of course, commonsense and a growing body of psychological and sociological research has documented the very, very loose correlation between material wealth and happiness – once the basic necessities of life are met. Satisfying personal relationships, long conversations with relatives and friends, and meaningful work remain vital essential for a truly rich life. The good life, as all the wisdom traditions remind us, means more than going to sleep surrounded by luxury goods.

So let’s make sure we find ways to create healthier, saner, and more satisfying lives and English classrooms in 2009 than 2008.

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